Colin Kaepernick sits out national anthem: Twitter reacts
By John Buhler
Colin Kaepernick chose to not stand up for the National Anthem on Friday for his beliefs over racial oppression in America. Here’s how Twitter handled it.
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick elected not to stand up for the national anthem during Friday’s preseason game versus the Green Bay Packers. This was Kaepernick’s first preseason game of the season and is quickly losing his chances to win back the starting job from incumbent Blaine Gabbert.
However, it wasn’t Kaepernick’s lackluster play on Friday vs. the Packers that had social media’s attention. It was his decision and later his reasoning behind not standing up for the National Anthem that set the Twitter-verse ablaze with scorching hot takes.
Kaepernick initially told the NFL Network’s Steve Wyche that he decided not to stand up for the national anthem was because he didn’t want to support a country’s flag that oppresses black people and people of color.
The 49ers organization respected his decision to not stand up for the national anthem, but some feel that the NFL might end up levying a suspension on Kaepernick for frankly exercising his First Amendment rights. He wasn’t patriotic in the slightest, but he has the right to freedom of speech as an American citizen.
It’s been a split reaction thus far to Kaepernick’s actions stemming from Friday. Some people are supporting his beliefs. Others are angry that he is disrespecting the United States of America. It’s a divisive issue for sure, but he is how Twitter is handling the Kaepernick decision to skip out on the National Anthem and his comments about racial oppression in America.
Texts coming in from coaches, players, front office execs from around league on Kap. So far every player backs him. No coach/exec does.
— mike freeman (@mikefreemanNFL) August 27, 2016
"Kaepernick Explains Protest of National Anthem" unreal! Do something productive not disrespectful! Or move out! https://t.co/HYNBLU5Mn0
— Brian Finneran (@BFinn86) August 27, 2016
looking forward to the internet's reasoned, thoughtful response to kaepernick's comments!
— Mina Kimes (@minakimes) August 27, 2016
And the career of Colin kaepernick is now over.
— Darren McKee (@DMacRadio) August 27, 2016
By the way, Colin Kaepernick will pay more than $4.7 million this year in taxes to the United States Treasury.
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) August 27, 2016
Colin Kaepernick has a right to stand up or sit for what he believes in. This is not hard to understand.
— John C. Varner III (@LilHulkQ) August 27, 2016
If you're a white person angry at Colin Kaepernick but not at police executing black Americans, you are most definitely part of the problem.
— Charlotte Clymer 🇺🇦 (@cmclymer) August 27, 2016
Wow a major smh at kaepernick
— JeremyWahl (@Jeremy_C_Wahl) August 27, 2016
Colin Kaepernick can kick rocks
— Ty Fowlkes (@CoachFowlkes) August 27, 2016
Kaepernick can do whatever he wants and make his stand... That's all well and good. But he's still an idiot for doing it.
— Mike (@TheMikeDonnelly) August 27, 2016
Colin Kaepernick is an unpatriotic jerk!! Dissing a country that allows him to earn millions of $ ain't cool!!
— Changle (@TaxExpress1) August 27, 2016
Poor decision on Colin Kaepernick's part to not stand for the national anthem
— Anthony Allen (@AnthonyAllen02) August 27, 2016
If your not good enough to start over Blaine Gabbert you shouldnt be aloud to stand for the national anthem anyways. USA is for winners
— PFT Commenter (@PFTCommenter) August 27, 2016
Needless to say, this is a polarizing political issue enveloped in frankly a polarizing player in Kaepernick.
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Though the 49ers organization and most of the players in the NFL support his decision, San Francisco could be in for a ton of bad publicity surrounding a declining player that isn’t going to win the starting job anymore. There is a growing sense that this is going to be big sports topic for at least the next several days.